15.3

Abuse and Neglect

• Abuse is the violent mistreatment of another person, occurring in families, between friends, among classmates, or between romantic partners.

Types of Abuse

Physical Abuse

• Behaviors that cause bodily harm to another person
• Signs of physical abuse include:
  • Bruises
  • Black eyes
  • Welts
  • Burns
  • Cuts
  • Choking
  • Slapping
  • Biting
  • Changes in behavior (anxiety, depression)

Emotional Abuse

• Attitudes, controlling behaviors, or words that harm a person's mental and emotional health
• Signs of emotional abuse include:
  • Loss of self-confidence
  • Fear
  • Extreme upset
  • Withdrawal from relationships and social activities
• Examples of emotional abuse:
  • Using threats or insults
  • Withholding love to control behavior
  • Ridiculing a person's identity
  • Calling a person names
  • Isolating a person from supportive relationships

Sexual Abuse

• Characterized by sexual violence, including sexual assault or sexual harassment
• Signs of sexual abuse may include:
  • Extreme anxiety
  • Difficulty sleeping
  • Nightmares
  • Bedwetting
  • Fear of being alone with certain people

Financial Abuse

• Using money to exert power in a relationship
• Examples of financial abuse include:
  • Stealing a person's money
  • Giving gifts or money and expecting something in return
  • Withholding money needed to buy necessities
• Most commonly occurs between romantic partners and between adult children and their aging parents or guardians

Cycle of Abuse

• Abusive behavior follows a cycle of four stages:
  1. Tension building
  2. Incident
  3. Reconciliation
  4. Calm
• The cycle of abuse repeats unless someone acts to break the cycle

Consequences of Abuse

• Physical, mental, and emotional consequences, including:
  • Injuries
  • Brain damage
  • Blindness
  • Motor impairments
  • Cognitive impairments
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Cancer
  • Liver disease
  • Obesity
• Long-term effects on mental health, including:
  • Depression
  • Anxiety
  • Eating disorders
  • PTSD

Intimate Partner Violence

• Abuse between two people who are or were married, dating, or in a romantic relationship
• Types of intimate partner violence include:
  • Physical abuse
  • Emotional abuse
  • Sexual abuse
  • Financial abuse
• People who have experienced intimate partner violence may:
  • Have physical injuries
  • Experience depression or anxiety
  • Feel socially isolated and alone
  • Have difficulty trusting others

Sibling Abuse

• Mistreatment of one sibling by another
• Forms of sibling abuse include:
  • Physical abuse
  • Emotional abuse
  • Sexual abuse
• Healthy sibling relationships do not involve patterns of fear, pain, or control

Elder Abuse

• Abuse of an older adult
• Forms of elder abuse include:
  • Physical abuse
  • Verbal abuse
  • Emotional abuse
  • Sexual abuse
  • Financial abuse
  • Neglect
• Many cases of elder abuse go unreported, leading to feelings of helplessness, loneliness, and distress

Preventing and Responding to Abuse

• Factors affecting abuse include:
  • Risk factors (history of abuse, mental health conditions, emotional immaturity)
  • Protective factors (interpersonal skills, emotional maturity, respect for others)
• Increase protective factors by:
  • Promoting health for yourself, your family, and your community
  • Improving mental, emotional, and social health
  • Surrounding yourself with healthy relationships
  • Educating yourself and others about the needs of others and effective caregiving
• Recognize and report abusive behavior by learning about signs of abuse and neglect, and educating others about the definition of abusive behavior and the signs of abuse